The Tigers will need some of the former down the postseason road, but Tuesday night, their sticky defense was more than enough to handle McNary for a 49-19 win in a girls Class 6A first-round state playoff game.

The win advances Tigard (20-5) into the second round, when Friday it will play host to Jesuit, a 59-49 winner over North Medford.

Tigard (20-5) has led 6A in fewest points allowed the past four years, so it’s not unexpected when the Tigers’ defense takes out an opponent as they did with McNary. The Celtics (13-14) made only six field goals, shot 15 percent from the floor and committed 31 turnovers.

McNary went 14 minutes without scoring midway through the game, including a scoreless second quarter.

“Defense is definitely a big deal here at Tigard,” said guard Lexi Carter, who led the Tigers with 23 points.

Tigard needed defense on a night when it wasn’t playoff-sharp offensively. The Tigers shot 32 percent and missed a lot of layups, particularly during the second quarter, when Carter scored the team’s only two field goals.

Lexi Carter (File)

“Our defense was really good, but the number of shots we missed tonight might not get us a win against Jesuit,” Tigard coach Steve Naylor said.

We’ll see. Last year in a second-round playoff game, Tigard heavily leaned on its defense to beat Jesuit 24-17 and qualify for the state tournament.

Tigard is bidding for its second consecutive state tournament appearance. The Tigers have many of the same players returning from last year’s tourney team, but insist they’re not thinking that far ahead. Naylor says Friday’s game isn’t make or break as far as defining Tigard’s season.

“I would be more upset with us if we didn’t give great effort,” Naylor said.

There were few questions about Tigard’s future Tuesday, though they did come early. McNary scored seven points during the first four minutes to take a 7-6 lead.

“McNary did some things early that made me nervous,” Naylor said.

It was brief, but unnecessary worry. Tigard scored the final nine points of the first quarter to take a 15-7 lead. Then Carter outscored the Celtics 7-0 during the second quarter to stake the Tigers to a 22-7 halftime lead.

By the time McNary ended a 14-minute scoreless drought two minutes into the third quarter on Madi Hingston’s 3-pointer, Tigard had a 26-10 lead. The Celtics never found a way to hand the Tigers’ pressure, and didn’t get closer than 16 points the remainder of the game.

McNary, second in the Central Valley Conference, was attempting to end a three-year winless playoff drought. Freshman Sydney Hunter led the Celtics with five points.